Which sized lesuire battery?

[marlowswindows]

Looking for recommendations for lesuire battery size from somebody with a system like mine.

Split charger installed.

Pure freedom electric reel

Shurflo pump with pump controller/ remote fob.

Usually work around 5-8 hours per day 4 days a week.

At the moment I'm running two leisure battery's with only one connected to the split charger.

Looking to go to one battery with it split chargering during the day but bench charging on a weekend during winter every two weeks in summer.

Tha ks in advance

 

[ched999uk]

How do you have 2 batteries connected up and only 1 connected to the split charge system?
A little maths:
Shurflo pump @ about 4A so say on 30% of an 8hr day = about 10Ah per day
Pure Freedom Reel at about 30A for 30seconds 20 times a day = about 5Ah per day
You should never take more than 50% of a lead acid battery's capacity out so 100Ah battery you should only take 50Ah.
Therefore for a 4 day week you would consume about 45Ah so close to your max of 50Ah.
Then you have your split charge system that will give you a small amount of charge back into the battery but how much all depends on how many engine starts you do a day and how many miles you drive so it's very difficult to guess - I would say ignore it for any calculation purposes.

With the above info I would say get a decent quality battery (heavier the battery the better as lead is heavy - more lead = better plates) of 110Ah or bigger capacity, the more Ah the better. I would charge it every 4 days summer and winter at an absolute minimum. Ideally lead acid batteries last longest when recharged soon after they have been used - i.e. each night if you can.

Can you not connect your 2 batteries in parallel (negative to negative, positive to positive, with fuses ) and then have the split charge charge both? The advantage is the load is spread between both and both are given a little by the split charge relay but disadvantage is if 1 battery dies it can discharge the other so you end up without any Ah left.

 

[Part Timer]

Mileage is the key, we run that equipment off one battery, per user, and have never charged a battery. We do however do circa 30k miles a year

 

[marlowswindows]

Thanks for reply.

The batteries are different ages and one is pretty much dead.

I've been told that when you connect batteries together they have to identical in spec and age.

Thinking if going 130ah.

I did have reel and pump on the one battery but it was draining very quickly so I put spare in.

At the minute the split cgargee is working fine keeps my 2 year old battery around 12.6 -12.7 most times. I have a volt meter connected at if I'm on a job constant for an hour or so drops to around 12.3-12.4.
So solit charging is working for me but just wanted to check if I put a bigger battery in would it have an effect on how well it charges. I do on average 200 miles per week.

 

[marlowswindows]

Mileage is the key, we run that equipment off one battery, per user, and have never charged a battery. We do however do circa 30k miles a year

What size battery are you slusing please

 

[ched999uk]

Thanks for reply.

The batteries are different ages and one is pretty much dead.

I've been told that when you connect batteries together they have to identical in spec and age.

Thinking if going 130ah.

I did have reel and pump on the one battery but it was draining very quickly so I put spare in.

At the minute the split cgargee is working fine keeps my 2 year old battery around 12.6 -12.7 most times. I have a volt meter connected at if I'm on a job constant for an hour or so drops to around 12.3-12.4.
So solit charging is working for me but just wanted to check if I put a bigger battery in would it have an effect on how well it charges. I do on average 200 miles per week.

Ideally the batteries do need to be of similar age but as long as the capacities are relatively close (within about 20 or 30 Ah) and they are same chemistry, it would be fine to connect both together (with appropriate fuses). Don't do it if you think 1 battery is iffy. They also need to be at the same voltage when you connect the 2 together otherwise they will try and equalise the charge and that could be a lot of current.
A 130Ah should be OK (bigger the better) but I would keep the 2 year old battery as the backup.
If you are maintaining a good voltage then your spilt charge relay is probably helping that. I probably only do about 60 miles a week and the van has a 'smart' alternator so I'm not sure my spilt charge relay really does anything. I keep meaning to disconnect it for a few days and see what effect it has on my battery voltage as I do charge every night (can park on drive, so easy), I suspect it's doing very little but it does keep my van battery topped up as it passes the charge to both batteries.

 

[Part Timer]

What size battery are you slusing please

I didn't actually know as I've had them for 4.5 years and never had to remove the cover to see. So I took these photos to show you the split charger fitted as well.

 

[marlowswindows]

Thanks guys

 

[ched999uk]

I didn't actually know as I've had them for 4.5 years and never had to remove the cover to see. So I took these photos to show you the split charger fitted as well.

Says 110Ah on battery cover, so I guess that's what's in the battery box.

 

[Part Timer]

Says 110Ah on battery cover, so I guess that's what's in the battery box.

That's the actual battery, I had to remove the cover to photo it, hence why it's upside down and you can see the handle..

 

[marlowswindows]

Ive been recommneded to get one of these does anybody have one? Any good?

 

[marlowswindows]

Ive been recommneded to get one of these does anybody have one? Any good?View attachment 29366

It's a 12V 110AH EXPEDITION GEL LEAD CARBON ULTRA DEEP CYCLE BATTERY (EXP12-110C). Thoughts?

 

[spruce]

You have to make sure that your alternator and split charge relay will properly charge a gel battery. A gel battery works better in environments where a slow discharge is required. AGM batteries are best where bursts of power (amps) are required.

So IMHO AGM rather than gel. But you need the right charger.

Again, this is my personal opinion. I prefer a standard leisure battery which has a CCA (cold cranking amps) option. It's not a perfect leisure battery, but is also not a perfect starter battery. It's made with caravan motor movers in mind.

A lead acid battery needs to be recharged as soon as possible after use. If not, then even though the battery is above 50% depth of discharge, sulphation will start to occur.

A battery discharged to less than 80% will accept a higher rate of charge than a battery over 80%. The manufacturers advise that a leisure battery shouldn't be charged at more than 10% of its capacity. So a 110amp leisure battery shouldn't be charged more than 11 amps. Doing so will reduce its longevity. Hence, the reason why my Numax smart leisure battery charger is only 10amps.

I run a single Numax XV31MF 105amp combo battery (with CCA rating) to run 2 Shurflo pumps and a diesel heater. The battery is now nearly 3 years old. I would imagine that my diesel heater uses more current a day than your electric reel does, however, my battery doesn't have to supply a peak amp demand your battery does. But it gets recharged every night when we get home, even though I also have a Sterling battery to battery charger. We just don't do enough miles to recharge the battery with the b2b battery alone.

​

​

 

[marlowswindows]

You have to make sure that your alternator and split charge relay will properly charge a gel battery. A gel battery works better in environments where a slow discharge is required. AGM batteries are best where bursts of power (amps) are required.

So IMHO AGM rather than gel. But you need the right charger.

Again, this is my personal opinion. I prefer a standard leisure battery which has a CCA (cold cranking amps) option. It's not a perfect leisure battery, but is also not a perfect starter battery. It's made with caravan motor movers in mind.

A lead acid battery needs to be recharged as soon as possible after use. If not, then even though the battery is above 50% depth of discharge, sulphation will start to occur.

A battery discharged to less than 80% will accept a higher rate of charge than a battery over 80%. The manufacturers advise that a leisure battery shouldn't be charged at more than 10% of its capacity. So a 110amp leisure battery shouldn't be charged more than 11 amps. Doing so will reduce its longevity. Hence, the reason why my Numax smart leisure battery charger is only 10amps.

I run a single Numax XV31MF 105amp combo battery (with CCA rating) to run 2 Shurflo pumps and a diesel heater. The battery is now nearly 3 years old. I would imagine that my diesel heater uses more current a day than your electric reel does, however, my battery doesn't have to supply a peak amp demand your battery does. But it gets recharged every night when we get home, even though I also have a Sterling battery to battery charger. We just don't do enough miles to recharge the battery with the b2b battery alone.

​

​

Magic thanks spruce. You've help me any many other in the past so I will take your word and avoid the carbon gel battery.

 

[spruce]

Magic thanks spruce. You've help me any many other in the past so I will take your word and avoid the carbon gel battery.

@Pjj has great success with AGM batteries. But he has the correct, in his case, marine charger, and plugs his van in every night to recharge his batteries. He doesn't have a split charge relay on his vans. AGM will take a hammering like his do, but recharging after every working day is essential.
The 'jury' is still out regarding the 50% depth of discharge rule used on lead acid batteries.
You may be able to push an AGM battery to 80% DOD, but they must not be left in a discharged state.

I follow a few yacht channels around the world, and most who fitted AGM batteries found they were unsuitable as they aren't recharged fully often enough. They were usually left in a partial discharge state for long periods (days), especially when relying on solar to recharge them. It's the nature of their beast.

I do believe that AGM are better than lead acid batteries in our industry, but lead acid are far easier to manage. So unless things change drastically, I will stick to lead acid.

 

[Scots lad]

12V 130AH 130 AH Leisure Battery DEEP CYCLE for Motorhome / Caravan / Campervan£ | eBay

130AH LEISURE DEEP CYCLE/DUAL PURPOSE/SOLAR. Capacity (C100) 130AH. SPECIFACATION 130AH DEEP CYCLE LEISURE. 130 A.H. DEEP CYCLE LEISURE UNIT. This will ensure that the battery you are purchasing is the correct battery for your vehicle.

www.ebay.co.uk

I have just purchased another of these, on I use 2 batteries also both same size 1 for pumps 1 for reel I charge them alternate nights

 

[marlowswindows]

@Pjj has great success with AGM batteries. But he has the correct, in his case, marine charger, and plugs his van in every night to recharge his batteries. He doesn't have a split charge relay on his vans. AGM will take a hammering like his do, but recharging after every working day is essential.
The 'jury' is still out regarding the 50% depth of discharge rule used on lead acid batteries.
You may be able to push an AGM battery to 80% DOD, but they must not be left in a discharged state.

I follow a few yacht channels around the world, and most who fitted AGM batteries found they were unsuitable as they aren't recharged fully often enough. They were usually left in a partial discharge state for long periods (days), especially when relying on solar to recharge them. It's the nature of their beast.

I do believe that AGM are better than lead acid batteries in our industry, but lead acid are far easier to manage. So unless things change drastically, I will stick to lead acid.

Do you think 110 ah is okay to run pump and reel on I'd be happy to charge every 2nd night

It's kids the take over my nighttimes as soon as van pulls on drive that's it so just need to find the balance thanks for your input though I do appreciate it.

 

[marlowswindows]

Think I'm going to go with this battery.

Click me

 

[CMcB]

Does anyone use a lithium leisure battery?

 

[Pjj]

Do you think 110 ah is okay to run pump and reel on I'd be happy to charge every 2nd night

It's kids the take over my nighttimes as soon as van pulls on drive that's it so just need to find the balance thanks for your input though I do appreciate it.

Ime not up on figures like @spruce is but feel the higher amp hour battery you have the better when I started I had 115 amp hour battery and that was only running two pumps and I charged that every day so think 110 is a bit low .

 

[marlowswindows]

Does anyone use a lithium leisure battery?

Ime not up on figures like @spruce is but feel the higher amp hour battery you have the better when I started I had 115 amp hour battery and that was only running two pumps and I charged that every day so think 110 is a bit low .

I'm hoping spruce comes on soon. I've got till 6pm to get next day delivery haha.

So I'm between two batteries now the one you use @spruce ? and the version similar.
The other battery is numax xv35mf

120ah instead of 105ah.

Only difference is cold cranking is better on the 105ah but surely this isn't too much of a problem I keep them well insulated and I know the reel will have a build up if power but not like an engine crank.